Pasadena Rosebud Academy charter school defies odds

PASADENA - As the nationwide achievement gap between black, Latino and white students expands, one Altadena charter school seems to be defying that trend, notching test scores that rival schools in affluent neighboring communities.

The high scores are not the product of some magic solution, and Principal Shawn Brumfield doesn't fashion herself as the next Geoffrey Canada, stumping for education reform between American Express commercials.

Her formula for success is simple - hard work and high standards.

"You can't have high achievement without hard work," Brumfield said unequivocally.

"We also have a strong curriculum, small class sizes and we have tremendous parental involvement," she said about the school, which opened its doors in 2007.

Brumfield's assessment sounds familiar.

Principals all over the nation talk tough about lighting a fire under teachers, students and parents.

Those efforts fall flat because educators often fail to include Brumfield's third ingredient for success.

"We believe every student can learn," she said.

Sounds simple, but the idea that socioeconomic factors preclude children from achieving in schools has been trendy and even politically correct speech since standardized testing revealed a gap between students of color and their white counterparts, according to Pasadena Unified School District board member Ramon Miramontes.

"When people in public say we have a high number of kids from foster homes or from families with challenges, that is a message that says these kids don't have the loved ones to help them succeed in their education," said Ramon Miramontes, PUSD board member. "And while that may be anecdotally true there is no research that says those children can't learn."

Test scores at Rosebud have been up dramatically during the last year. The school scored 793 on the base academic performance index in 2010. The highest score is 1,000, but schools strive to break 800, which indicates overall proficiency in math and English.

The growth score of 890 rivals Pasadena's best schools, and the 907 score for black students surpasses one of the elementary schools in affluent South Pasadena, according to CDE data. The school is 80 percent black and 20 percent Latino.

"Even at our higher performing schools, we have subgroups that are lagging behind," Miramontes said.

At schools such a Longfellow, Sierra Madre, Norma Coombs and Don Benito, black and Latino students are scoring high on standardized testing, but not matching the performance of their white counterparts, according to CDE data.

And while much is made of teaching to the test, Brumfield said her school's scores stem from building language skills that help students unlock what's behind a lesson plan.

"The students learn academic language, so we don't just learn that five plus two equals seven, we learn that seven is also the sum of the equation," Brumfield said.

Those academic language lessons travel well. Students take the lesson with them to middle school, better arming those students for the rigor of secondary education.For parents of Rosebud students, it can feel like going back to school.

"(Daniel) comes home with homework, so I have homework," said Trina Brown, a 42-year-old Pasadena woman and parent at Rosebud. "I know multiplication, but now I need to know how to teach multiplication."

Despite its reputation for educating children, the rigors of Rosebud Academy are often too much work and too demanding for some parents.